does anyone know that really long brick wall on the A35 just outside Dorchester?

[brimfull]

What is on the other side?

Obviously a large estate,but whose?

I am very nosy?

looking at that wolkipedia it must be that one as it mentions the stag gates.

I think the A31 turns into the A35 at some point near there anyway.

So it's the Drax family who are the rich buggers then! Thanks.
I see the house is open to the public a few times a yr when the locals sell their tea and cakes...may well bake a lemon drizzle for the occasion!

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It's about 25 miles from Dorchester though, ggirl?

wendy-is it ,where does it say that?

cod-keep up ! we've done that

aerial pic of Charborough (multimap)

how do you get the distnace form dorchester to be 25 miles from that map though?

winterbourne zelston is on that map and it's quite close to Dorchester ..isn't it?

this map has a 10km line at bottom L - Dorchester's on the L of the map and I reckon it's at least 30km to Winterbourne Zelston? (That would be 20 miles)

This is the OS map, with the Stag Gate marked and the Lion Lodge, it looks amazing

Not Cranbourne anyway, it is Cranborne (minus o), if you mean the Dorset one, which as you are discussing an area in Dorset it is more than likely that you do

I went into the grounds as a child, many, many years ago, sadly all I can remember is the long drive from the gate, I can't even remember which gate we drove through

Locally known as the Drax Estate, they don't own that much, son is running as potential MP at next election, I used to go to tea parties there when I was little.

we used to drive past it on the way to my granny's when i was little

i'm sure there was a stretch of it painted red where Lawrence of Arabia was killed - but i can't find anything on t'internet. does anyone know about that?

we used to drive past it on our way to our holidays...a landmark on our journey !

Oooh you are right Lulu, there was something in the paper recently about him, I am sure there is a dispute as to where he actually died

My FIL used to work on the farms there and my IL's live in a cottage on the edge of the estate. It's great because they're allowed to go into the estate and when dd1 was little they would take down to look for the deer. There's nearly always a white one in the herd.

(Lawrence of Arabia was killed at Clouds Hill,Bovington which is about 10 miles away )

Further down the A31 there is Red Post which was to do with deportation of prisoners to Australia. Just up from there is the Botany Bay Inn .

Isn't Drax a fantastic name?

Drax sounds like something out of James Bond. There's a Drax Arms pub as well.

Did you know the stag has 5 legs.

oooh sophie and snorris,actual connections ,what is the house like ?

Thanks everyone,my nosiness is now satsfied.

surfermum-really??

will attempt a look tomorrow morning

I know that one. I always get unaccountably annoyed when driving by. Have you noticed the deer on the gate has five legs? I bet someone's already said that and I haven;'t read properly due to wine.

Surfermum just did!

(It's a tree or something really, according to one of the write-ups)

here

you do wonder why a perfect skilful sculptor would add a skinny treestump to a statue like that - I reckon it was a tease! (It works, doesn't it!)

House is lovely, parents go there sometimes for dinner parties an am sure they go up in a lift to the dining room, they had a big auction and sold off a lot of stuff there a few years ago.

This brings back memories, used to drive past this wall and gate on the way to visit my late Grandad in Bere Regis, always wondered who lived there.

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ooh fil lives near here, i always think it is so romantic looking. have been in grounds once but had to go before having a good look round. their own website

do you think stag log is to save it from structural weakness? legs rather spindly and must be quite windy up there.